Tongue-switch.



' E. H STEBDMAN.

TONGUE SWITCH.

APPLICATION FILED MAR.17,1911.

Patented 12111311913.

4 3 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

E. H. STEEDMAN.

TONGUE SWITCH.

I APPLIGATIUN FILED MAR. 17 1M1. 1 ,O49,618 v Patented Jan. T11 1913.

E. H. STBBDMAN- TONGUE SWITCH. APPLIOATION FILED M R. 11, 91'1. v

, 'Batented Jan. 7, 1913.-

-' castwith minin'iumtrouble and expense in un rnn STATES PATENT O Ficn,-

niiwiiil ii'srnnniiinn, or;s1. LOUIS, Mrssouiil,assrolaoia r CURTIS doorman! Tbsuaswmn,

' Specification of Letters Patent. 'Patnted'Jan 7., 1913,

Application filed March 17, 1911., Serial No. 615,070.

Taazz whm a comm Be'it known-that LEDWIN H. STEEDMAN, a citizen of the United States, residing at St. Louis, Missouri, have invented a certain new and useful Improvement in Tonguec- Switches, of which the following is a full,

clear;'.and exact description, such as will enable others skilled in theart to which it appertains't-o make and use the same.

This invention relates to railway switches,-

and particularly to tongue switches such as are used in street railway track structures. The main object of my lnvention is to 1 provide a tongue switch that can be manufactured cheaply of manganese steel castings or other suitable hard steel, and which also possesses the following good qualities or characteristics that are necessary to a suc-' cessful commercial tongue switch: safety, durability; ample bearing surfaces for the tongue, adjustability, and'ease of maintenance. a

In order to manufacture cheaply of man gane'se steel castings, the parts of the switch must'be of such design that they can be the foundry and also assembled into a working switch without other finish than is usual on castings in a foundry, such, for example, asremoving gates and fins and grinding ofi' rough lumps. 1 p y My improved switch is so designedthat it can bemanufactured cheaply from man ganese' steel castings and without the necessity of using spelterin parts; it. is safe because it is designed in such a manner that the tongue cannot-be. kicked laterally nor vertically by a passingwheel and thus prod-uce a split switch; it is durable because itgis formedfrom manganese steel castings where ample bearing surfaces are provided forthe tongue, and in which bearing surfaces are so arranged that the point of the tonguecannot rise; it is'adjustabl e because the cooperating parts are so desi ned that.

' lost. -motio1-1 between the cooperating bearing surfaces can be taken up easily; and it can'be maintained easily because the cooperating parts are designed in such a manner, thatan'y worn part can be replaced quickly es sectional view taken on the. irregular section line 3 -3 of Fig. 2, looking in the direction indicated by the arrow; Fig. 4 is an enlarged vertical cross sectional view taken on Y the line et-4 of Fig. 1; Fig. 45 is a cross sec tion on the line t 4. ofFig. 2; Fig.5 is a top plan view of. the body part of the switch; Fig. 6 is a longitudinal vertical sectional-view taken on the line 6-6 of Fig. 5;

Fig. 7 is a cross sectional view taken on the line 7-7 of Fig. 5; Fig. 8 is a top plan view which illustrate one form I A- designates the body part of the switch;

of the tongue; Fig. 9 isa side elevational view of the tongue; Figs. 10and 11 illustrate the spectively; Figs. 12 and 13 illustrate the taking up lost motion and wear on the tongue and body part of the switch; and Figs. 15, 16, 17 and 18 are vertical sectional views illustrating various modifications of my invention.

quarter-box and t-he wedge, re-' i; spring seat and the spring, respectively} F1g. -14: 1s a vertical cross sectional view" illustrating a manually-operated device'for.

Referring to Figs. 1 to 13 of the drawings of my invention,-

and B designates the oscillating tongue that is mounted in said body part, both of said' members being preferably cast from nianga-' nese steel or-some other suitable hard steel. The extreme heel end! portion 1 of the tongue issubstantiallysemi conical-shape in cross-section, as shown inFigs. 1, 2 and 9,"

and. the body part A of the switch is pm, videdwit-h a pocket that conforms to the shapeof said semi-conical-shaped portion 1,

thereby producing cooperating conical bear- 1 ing surfaces on the heel end of the tongue and on the body, part of the switch which are located adjacent the tread of the tongue and which are ample to restrain lateral forces which tend to move the tongue crosswise of the body part. The fact that the main pivot bearing is located adjacent the running surface is a very desirable feature in a tongue switch for the lateral forces act near this plane and therefore the bearing surfaces which resist these lateral forces should be located at that point. The bottom face of the tongue rests upon a horizontal bearing surface or floor on the body part A of the switch and the portion 20f this floor extends rearwardly or back of the point X on the tread face of the tongue which a wheel first strikes in passing onto the heel end of the tongue so as to provide a relatively large horizontal bearing surface to support the vertical forces acting at the heel end of the tongue. By constructing the switch in this manner I not only eliminate the possibility of the tongue tilting or cocking up when a wheel passes onto same but I also distribute the downward forces over a relatively large surface and obtain suflicient bearing area at the heel end of the tongue to prevent wear whicheventually would cause the tongue to rock verticall The overhanging wall on the body part A, which eni- 30 braces the curved portion 1 on the heel of the tongue, tends to hold said tongue firmly down on its horizontal bearing surface when the tongue is forced back into the recess, and 1t gives a conical. surface of rotation of ap- 5 proximately 180, see Figs. 2, 3 and a.

Consequently, there is no possibility of the switch being split by an end kick on the tongue produced by lateral thrusts of a passing wheel, because the conical g pocket in the body part A encom passes practically all portions of the tongue rearward of the center of oscillation.

The pocket in the body part A of the switch which receives the pivotal bearing portion 1 on the tongue is preferably. provided at its lower end with a seini-annular-shaped recess 3 into which the extreme lower edge of the portion 1 projects, as shown in Fig. 2, one advantage of constructing the switch in this manner beingthat the pocket in the body part which receives the heel portion 1 of the tongue can be formed at a low cost because it is not necessary to finish or grind the entire tongue-engaging face "of the pocket or form any sharp corners or angles in same, another advantage being that the recess 3- serves as a collecting chamber for dirt that works through the joint betwe'en the tongue and the body part A.

The tongue B is providedon its under side with a depending lug 4 which is preferably formed integral with the tongue and arran ed in such a manner that the conical sur ace 5011 the front side thereof is con- 65 centric with the axis of rotation of the said lug and exerting rearward and downoa ers tongue, said lug cooperating with the heel end portion 1 of the tongue to form a relatively large conical pivot for the tongue composed of an upper portion 1 that lies adjacent the tread of the tongue and a lower portion 5 which lies in a'lower horizontal plane than the tongue. \Vith such a structure 1t is only necessary that the cooperating bearing surfaceson the tongue and body part be accurately castvin the foundry and any 7 bumps or irregularities removed by rough grinding, for the adjusting means herein after described takes up all wear, and any wear of these surfaces tends to bring the surfaces to a better bearing.

he switch is provided with a springb0 S of any preferred design, and means of novel construction is provided for lock- 'ing the tongue in the body part A, s ill means beingso designed that it takes up lOSlllTlOllOll and wear lwtwccu the bearing surfaces of the body part and tongue, and also tends to prevent upward increment of the tongue. The means shown in liigs. 1 to ifor accoi'nplishiug this consists of a. bean ing i'neniber or quarter box 6 having a tupered curred surface that coliperatrs with the conical face 5 on the dcpeni ling l'r'" i on the tongue, and. a device 7 for in said bearing member in engagement wil 5 ward pressure on said lug and to it. The lug i, bearing member 6 and loch i 7 are arranged in a housing 8 on the and side of the body part A of the switch, and said housing is preferably formed integral with said body part. The lug lon the tongue projects downwardly into the housing through an elongated opening 9 in the top wall of the housing, and the ljicariug membcr 6 extends transversely of said opening and bears against the top wall of the housing. The device 7 which locks the quarterbox or bearing member in position, consists of a-wedge arranged between. the said quarter-box 6 and the end wall of the 1 housing 8, and a coiled compression spring 10 is provided for exerting pressure on the wedge 7 so as to automatically take up any lOSl'wlllOtlOIl or wear between the cooperating bearing surfaces on the tongue and body part or betweenthe quarter-box and the lug; on the tongue with which it coiiperates. This spring is preferably arranged on a shank 11 on the wedge between a collar 12 on said shank and a spring seal; 13 which is carried by a bracket 14 on the body part A, and the inclined face of said wedge which bears against the housing is formed at suchan angle that the wedge will not he forced outwardly or become accidentally displaced by any pressure which the lug l might exert on the quarter-box or bearing member 6 when the wedge is in service.- The face 7 of the wedge which engages the 130 quarter-box 6 is so formed that it tends. to

move saidbox upwardly and thus hold it tightly against the top wall of the housng. If desired, thequarterbox 6 can be gage said box at only faces 8 which the wedge -7f'engages as such inst-he tread surface as i . paired a new part will fit in a I out; re-grinding or re-shaping the surfaces tracktool can be used Springand for-"lifting old members of' the swi'tch,

holds the tongue of such a structure which have a definite o-r fixed relation to curately fit or shape lines in Fig. 4. Theref a construction overcomes the necessity of accurately grindlngvor shaplng'the cooperating faces of the wedge and housing and the wedge and bearing member 6 to, insure a tight fit between said parts. i e

The. spring-actuated wedge 7 autoifiatically takes up any wear' or lostmotionon the cooperating parts of the switch and securely in position so that a tight joint is always insured at the point where the heel end of the tongue bears against the body part of the switch. And another desirable feature is thatv the only parts each other ar the pivot portion 1 on the heel of the tongue and. the seat for same in 30c.

. manufacturing the the body partA. Consequently, the cost of switch is reduced to a is not necessary. to. aca number of cooperata'nd body. part minimum because it ing surfaces on the tongue of the switch, and when t-he switch is re used part withof the used part. The tongue can be removed easily fromthe body part of the switch owing to the fact that the wedge,

spring, and spring-seat are so constructed and arranged that a crow-bar or common for-compressing the the" spring-seat out indicated by broken ore, a switch of the construction above described can be' main mined in proper working condition at a of operative position, as

, low cost because anunskilled laborer can.

- mg out the spring and replace a wornpart'quicklyby simplypryspring-seat with a crow-bar and substituting a new part for the worn part, the tongue, body part, and quarter-box being so designed that the bear-- ing surfaces, on a new 'pajrt will accurately fit the cooperating bearing surfaces of "the namely; the

members which do not have to be renewed.

While I prefer' touse a spring' lQ'or other :device for causing the wedge :.7,'t'0 automatically take up the lost motion andwear, a manually-operated means co'uld beused in-- stead of said spring for retaining the wedge in position, and in Figg'll I have illustrated such a means which'consists of a screw 15 able bearing member-- imner end with a seat for.

are separated tightly inst "or back of the V I 1 I, a strikes the heel end of the tongue n ass1ng 13e arranged in a threadedepeningin a removb t' fil 14, said screw drical or conical-shaped 1 shank of the wedge. d, provided witlr a head or turning )iece 15% ofas to enable it to be turned to for ethe wed-ge the bearingfime 1b to take up wear and lostgmot on an said wedge has been adiustr-l; properly it can be locked in position uneansof-mpin 16 inserted inthe head, ,and projecting into a hole 17 in the -b ottom wa ll of the bracket 14. v H y In Fig. 15 I have illustr Qdtty tch that is quite similar in construction to the switch previously described except; that; the wedge 7 which cooperateswith E thehquarter-box or bearing member 6 is provided with; a straight vertical surface 1 7 that} engages a' "straight vertical surface fformed on: said quarter-box, the quarter-box.- being sol designed, that it laps over the lug 4,011; the tongue and thus forces; the tongueldown wardly tightly ing surface 2 on the floor of the body of the switch. 1

While I prefer to use a-lug st-gprovided with a tapered or conioal shaped surface:- which the quarter box G engages the tongue could be provided withialug Qtbaving a flange 25, as shown in Figs; 16 and thermal ter-box 26 designed in such.a nianner that it projects over said flange so as to preyent upward movement of the tongue, avedge 27 which cooperates with said quarter-box having an inclined face 21' that. cooperates with. an oppositely inclinedface ,1 on rthe quarter-box and thus ;exerting j-downward;

pressure on saidfquarter boxy w against the. horizontal bear- In the embodiment ofmyinventiorr shown 7 in F ig. 1.7,no nieans otherthanthe" hanging wall of the botlyrpart A switch is provided for exerting Cl0\ npressure on the tongue, the'lug tletignj' the under side of the tongue being straigl t and the quarter-box 36 and wedge'fi'l' gloein ,so' designed that they merely,, e Xert end-wise pressure on the tongue so: as :to holdthe ivpt; portion on the heel endQof samein h in the body part A. I

In Fig. 18 I have illustrateda strain in which the pivot portion lf on the heel end of the tongue is semi-cylindricalLshape cross section instead and theLtQngue being 'pIro-v I of conicalshaped a in the structures prevlously,descrlbed, theb dv tongue can be While the structures reviousl described vary slightly in details of construction, they all embody the same characteristics, namely, first, an amplepivot' bearing between the body and tongue adjacent the running surface and the lateral distributing forces; seeend, a siniple straight floor to the switch body undercutting at the heel end, an ample horizontal bearing for the tongue in the rear of the pivot bearing joint/at the running surface, thus preventing depression of the heel end and raising of the point of the tongue; third, very short portion of the tongue. back of center of oscillation exposed to lateral pressure of wheels, reducing to a negligible point the liability of the heel end of the tongue receiving an end 'lcicl; from a passing wheel; fourth, on oblon simple hole in body to permit of tongue being inserted into undercut heel bearing; filth. a tongue with a straight bottom and a simple rough dependent lug'havinga front 5;! i" 0 concentric with rear pivot bearing; sixth. a roughly made but etlicient adjust inndevice that takes up lost motion,,both horizontally and vertically, and .holds the tongue down to its floor, and back against its pivotbearingon the body part; and seventh. all parts so simple in design that. they may be cast suliiciently accurate and smooth in the i'oimdry so that good smooth coinnicrcial e stings with only ordinaryfou'ndry finish may be assembled into new switches orused for repairing a worn or broken switch.

Having thus described my lnvention, what I claim new and desire to secure by Letters Patent. is:

1. A tongue switch comprlsmg a tongue provided at its heel end with a curved.

pivotal bearing surfacewhich is located adjacent the tongue. a body part. having a seat which receivc said' pir talbeinring surface. a lug depending: from said tongue a short distance in t'ront' ol the heel end thereofand pro jQCllUQ through an opening in said body part which of such dimensions that the said body part to compensate for wear, a member that bears against the front side or front face of said lug and thus holds said tongue in position, said lug and member being; so formed that the tongue cannot wheel-tread surface of the,

adjusted longitudinally of move upwardly, and a relatively large horizontal bearing; surface on the floor of said body part on which the extreme heel end portion of the tongue bears, said lioiizontsl bearing. surface extending rearwordly oeyond the exposedgoint between the heel of the tongue and said body part.

2, A ton ue "switch coniomsius a ton e h I 1 r5 provided at its g'hcel end W 'fl curved pivotal bearing surface \vh -c' located ad.-

jacent the wheel-tremlv surf ce 0 the tongue, "which receives a body part having a so said pivotal bearing surface, a lug depending from the under side oi; said. tor in advance oi"? the extreruc heel end thereoit and projecting through. an opening said body part which is of such dimensions that the tongue can be :15 ed longitudinally of said body part to "compensate for Wear, a member that bears against the front side or front face of said lug and thus holds said tongue in position, a wedge eoiiperating with said member, a spring" acting on said wedge. and a bracket on body part on which. said spring bears.

3. A ton gue switch comprising a cast metal tongue. provided at its heel end with an ap proximately conical-shaped pivotal bearing surface whose upper end terminates at the wheel-tread surface of the tongue, :1 cast metal body part havingan undercut pocket for receiving the conicalshaped pivotal bearing: surfiace of the tongue, an ntegral depending lug on said tongue, said body part being provided with an elongated opening through which said lug projects, and means coiiperating withsaid lug to hold the tongue in the pocket in the'bodypart'and also prevent upward movement of the tongue.

4. A tongue switch comprising a body part, a tongue provided at its heel end with acurved pivot portion which fits in a seator pocket in the body part; a depending lug 'on said tongue, :1 horizontal bearing surface formed integral with said body port and extending rearu-ardly beyond the exposed joint. between the tongue and body part, and an adjustable device arr-a ed between said body part and the front side of the depending hig'zo i the t-ongue'which' holds the pivot portion on the tongue in its seat and also preventsthe tongue from moving upwardly oii its horizontal bearing surface.

5. lo a tongue switch; an oscillating tongue. a body part, and an approximately conical-shaped pivot portion on the heel end of the tongue that tile in an undercut pocket formed in said body part. said body part. having a horizontal" bearing, surface for the tongue that extends rearwardly or backof the exposed pivot joint between said tongue and body parts .6. In a tongue switch, an oscillating tongue provided with pivotal. bearing surfaces composed of an upper portion arranged at the extremeshcel cndaof the tongue ad acent the tread surface, thereof and a lower portion arranged, under the tongum and in advance of said, upper portion, both of said portions having approximately conical surfaces; a body part having a bear- -of the conical surface of said lower porthe tongue.

tion.

7. In a tongue switch, an oscillating tongue provided with pivotal bearing surfaces composed of an upper portion arranged atthe extreme heel end of the tongue adjacent the tread surface thereof and a lowerportion arranged under the tongue and in advance of said upper portion, a body part having a bearing surface that conforms to the shape of.said upper pivotal bearing surface and also a horizontal surface on which the heel end of the tongue bears, said body part being so formed that it does not contact with the lower pivotal bearing surface on the tongue, a. removable member which engages only that side of the lower pivotalbearing surface of the tongue which lies nearest to the point of 'the tongue, and means cooperating with said member for taking up wear and lost motion on the cooperating pivotal surfaces of the tongue and body part.

fh tOIl 'lle SlVltCl'l C0111 llSlll a bOCl V b all all OSCIllEItID t-OD UG concentric 86ml 7 t: a .3 i

conical-shaped, pivotal bearing surfaces on the heel end portion of the tongue arranged in different horizontal planes, an undercut pocket'i-n the body part for, recelvmg the upper plvotal bearing surface of the tongue,

and a removable bearing member arranged in said body part under the tongue for engaging the lower pivotal bearing surface of 9. i In a tongue, switch, a tongue having an upper running surface and a lower bearing surface approximately parallel to said-running surface and extendingpractically the entire length of the tongue, surface at the heel end of the tongue arranged with its larger diameter adjacent the lower bearing surface of the tongue, a. downwardly projecting lug on the tongue arranged in advance of the heel end thereof so as to provide a relatively great horizontal bearing surface between the rear side of the lug and, the heel end of the tongue, the forward face of said lug consisting'of a conical surface which has approximately the same center line of revolution as the conical pivotal surface at the heelend of the tongue a conical pivotal an --arranged with its smaller diariietera'djacentifthe lower bearing surfacewon the tongi'jicha body, part comprising the usual running surfaces, a .floor between said running surfaces"consisting of an approximately horizontal, plane" extending the full length'ofthe tongue and adapted to act as a bearing surface for the tongue, a conical pivotal surface or sockct on said body part extending up from said floor and adapted to receive the conical pivotal surface at the heel: end of the tongue, said floor having a hole "arranged in advance of said heel socket which is so proportioned that a sufii cient clearance isprovided for the depending lug on the tongue to permit free movement of the tongue, and adjustableameans in the body part cooperating with the conical forward surface of the depending lug on the tongue to hold the heel end of the tongue in the socket provided for same in the body part and also for holding the-tongue down against the floor of said body part.

10. In a tongue switch, a tongue provided with a conical heel end portion, a body part having the'us'ual running surfaces and also a depressed horizontal floorextending the entire length of the tongue and adapted to form a bearing surface on which theundel',

side of the tongue rests, a conical surface or socket in said bodv part between saidhorizontat floor and running surfaces whose larger diameter is located adjacent said floor, said socket being adapted to act as a pivotal surface-for the conical heel end portion of the tongue, an mtegral lug depending from the under side of the tongue and arranged in front of the heel end portion of the tongue, a conical surface on the front side of sald lug which has approximately 'the same center line of revolution as the conical surface on the heel end of the tongue, the floor of said body part being provided with a hole or opening pending lug on the tongue, said hole being so proportioned that ,said lug can move freely therein, a bearing block cooperating with the conical bearing surface on the front side of said lug, cooperating horizontal bearing surfaces on the body part and on said bearing block which prevent said bearing block from moving upwardly relativelyto the body part, and an-adjustablewedge arranged with its front side in engagement with'saidbody part and its rear side in engagement with saidbearing block.

' 11 In a tongue switch, a tongue, at body part, an approximately conical-shaped pivotal bearing surface on the heel end of the tongue whose upper end terminates at ,the' wheel-treadsurface of the tongue, an under-A part for receiving out pocket in the body for recelving the dethe conical-shaped pivotal bearing surfaced on the tongue, a lug depending from the an elsngatad opening through whichsaid Lug prqects, and means coiipera't-mg wlth said lug to hold the pivotal bearing surfabe on the 'i 'mgue in. the pocket grovided for same 111 L {11%; iamgue frfim moving upwardly.

ua body part of theswltch and also signature in the presence \V' messes R. E. YVIIIKLER, L. C. BLAKE.

In testimony whereof I hereunto afiix my m? t-wa witnesses this 7th day of March 19 1.

EIFWKN STEEDMAEL 

